Within the framework of «Made in Russia» International Export Forum opened at World Trade Center Moscow, the Plenary Session «2030 is already tomorrow. What is to be done?» was held.
While opening the discussion, Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Mikhail Mishustin and Prime Minister of Serbia Ana Brnabic welcomed the Forum participants.
Mikhail Mishustin reminded that that year Serbia was the partner country of the event and noted: «The Forum is a good platform for meaningful and constructive dialogue to discuss topical issues related to non-resource non-energy exports, find practical solutions that will help expand the geography and increase the volume of supplies of Russian goods and services to international markets. <…> Processes in the world economy are developing rapidly. Demand and consumption patterns are changing, and the explosive growth of digital technologies makes you run even faster in order to move forward. <...> We have an ambitious goal set by President of Russia - to ensure by 2030 a real increase in the export of non-primary non-energy goods by at least 70%».
Today Russia has not only returned to the pre-crisis level, but also exceeded it; non-resource non-energy export is also showing good results, the volume of which this year is predicted to be over 180 billion USD (the highest in the last three years). But it is important, according to Mikhail Mishustin, not to weaken control and find a balance in foreign markets: «We can see sharp fluctuations in the price conjuncture. Due to the imposed restrictions and closed borders, supply chains have been disrupted. Turbulence in trade policy and local shortages of goods persist. The risks of increased protectionism remain real. To increase Russian exports of non-primary non-energy goods, significant transformation processes are needed in our economy. This task is achievable».
Also an important area of activity is the creation of conditions for increasing the sales of made in Russia industrial goods, ensuring a wide access of Russian enterprises to foreign markets, first of all, we are talking about small and medium-sized businesses. At the moment, in Russia, there is less than one percent of export-oriented companies, the share should be increased: «We need a unified support system for industrial exporters, which could adapt to the requirements of buyers and make easier and more convenient the work on foreign destinations».
In this regard, according to Mikhail Mishustin, it is very important that companies can receive the necessary assistance at every stage of their development, including the reducing of administrative and organizational barriers in penetration to foreign markets: «It is necessary to help the beginners in export, because they often produce good competitive goods and are eager to find foreign buyers, but they just do not know how to start, they act literally by trial and error. <…> We [the state] are creating an eco-environment that is comfortable for companies, which will harmoniously integrate into their business processes. It is created to help, but not make additional difficulties. The services providing will become natural process and, most importantly, not burdensome. For such purposes, the digital platform «My Export» was launched last year. <...> There is one more governmental decision. Now, it will become much easier for exporters to license dual-use products that are subject to export controls. And the procedure is completely digitalized. From now on, it will be possible to submit documents and then obtain a license in electronic form».
In his speech, Mikhail Mishustin also stressed as foolows: «Our country produces high quality products. And you need to actively promote it, demonstrating advantages and reliability. Dispel myths and false stereotypes. <...> Expansion of foreign trade is a powerful driver for the development of our entire economy, additional capacity utilization and diversification of production, the creation of new working places».
Within the framework of the forum, awarding of the winners of the prize in the field of international cooperation and export «Exporter of the Year» was held.
In welcoming speech, Ana Brnabic noted that the key topic of this year's forum is one of the most significant at the moment, and also shared with the event participants the results of the work of the Government of the Republic of Serbia in improving the quality and standard of living of people, increasing the competitiveness of business and developing the country's economy, projects and priorities for 2030.
According to Prime Minister od Serbia, thanks to the successful fiscal consolidation and reforms that had significantly improved the business environment, Serbia was able to reduce unemployment, increase capital investment and pass towards political and economic stability: «We knew we had to transform our economy - from an economy based on labor-intensive investments to an economy based on knowledge, creativity, innovation and new technologies. Then we made a strategic decision to start a comprehensive digitalization of public administration, our economy and our society as a whole. In just four years, we have managed to turn the information and communication technologies sector into a fast-growing sector of our economy, which is also the largest exporter. <...> We have managed to establish an important partnership with the world's largest scientific centers, such as Skolkovo, with huge investments in capital projects. We are building road and rail infrastructure in cooperation with Russian companies such as Russian Railways, and this has been of help to us. Last year, the year of the pandemic, our economic decline was minimal - only 0.9%, and this year we have recovered and we expect that after dynamic development this growth will exceed 7%. <…> We will continue to invest in knowledge, innovation and advanced technology. Until 2030, our three development priorities will be as follows: for the first - the development and use of artificial intelligence, for the second - bioeconomics, increasing capacities in biomedicine, biotechnology, bioinformatics, for and third - energy reliability and stability, sustainable development of the environment».
In conclusion, Ana Brnabic wished the forum participants success, creative ideas, courage and inspiring decisions.
The forum participants discussed the current situation in the field of international trade, the problems faced by exporters, including the pandemic, as well as the support measures needed to increase the number of export-oriented companies.